The Iron Heel
Book review
The blood
Of little children
Are on our hands
SSH102/1839
Professor Cottin
Jason Chester
11/16/08
SSH102/1839 Jason Chester
Professor Cottin 11/12/08
US History
Book Review
“THE IRON HEEL”
In this life we stand amongst ourselves. All on our own voyage of dreams and wishes, hoping for the best we hold our breath, close our eyes, and cross our fingers. Today or tomorrow anything could happen. Formed by our everyday experiences people on a daily basis find their past clashing with their future. Aspirations to be more fill the hearts of everyone whether rich or poor. The vision to interpret is what they are willing to do, to get what they want. The struggle between the bourgeoisie and the proletariats tell the story of two different classes. The two have their view points, to justify their persistence in their resistance against each others ways Jack London knew this story all to well, and he expressed it in The Iron Heel.
The Iron Heel by Jack London is a phenomenal book that explores the struggle between the working class, and the rich upper class. He takes us down a road of misery, torment, and injustice all expressed through the words of Ernest Everhard. Ernest is the main character whose socialist views are expressed all through the book. Ernest is amazing. He is great at history and proving without a reasonable doubt to the bourgeois the error of their ways. “I charge the capitalist class with having mismanaged society.” (London, P.93)
“I point out to you the wretchedness of the modern man- three million child slaves in the United States, without whose labor profits would not be possible, and fifteen million underfed, ill-clothed, and worse-housed people.”(London, P.92)
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He spoke of the “industrial machine” which we are all part of. It starts from the capitalist and goes down from the bosses to the workers, to the consumers, and all their agents along the way like lawyers and soldiers.
“They were all ties to the merciless industrial machine. And the pathos of it and the tragedy is that they’re tied by their heart-strings. Their children- always the young life that it is their instincts to protect.” (London, P.55)
The industrial machine drove good men to do things they would never be proud of. It was tough for a man to have a free thought. They were all tied to the ways of capitalism. Men who were good and intelligent could never be able to speak freely, and express themselves in an honest modern way. Thinking like that would seem unconventional, and you might get committed to an asylum, for being that way. A prime example is in the case of the character Jackson getting injured at the Sierra mills. Although it was clear to his bosses and his lawyer he was not at fault for his injury. Being that they were already in bed with the capitalist. They had no other choice than to first place the blame on him, and just get him to think he had done something wrong, and should strongly reconsider getting any benefits for his on the job injury. They all would rather see a man out of work and his family starving, than any of theirs’.
Jack London knew all about the Industrial machine. He was born in San Francisco in 1876. He grew up poor amongst the working class. “He worked at various hard labor jobs, pirated for oysters on San Francisco Bay, served on a fish patrol to capture poachers, sailed the Pacific on a sealing ship, joined Kelly's Army of unemployed working men, hoboed around the country, and returned to attend high school at age 19.” ( He is famous for many books and short stories. But the Iron Heel tells of a reality that is as present then, as it is now.
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His writing ability is amazingly expressed on every page. He speaks not only as a man that lived the experience but of a man, which envisions better and wishes the best for others. He clearly makes distinctions of society that people neglect to see, or further more since being is consciousness, he explores a world that people know exist, but rarely think about or talk about. From his expressions in this book about all the possibilities that could occur. His words are of a man who strongly believes he can change others.
“The Capitalist, being selfish, wants all he can get in the division. When there is only so much of the same thing, and when two men want all they can get of the same thing, there is a conflict of interest. There is the conflict of interest between labor and capital. And it is an irreconcilable conflict.” (London p. 31)
There are many themes, with very deep words in this book.
“The gown you wear is stained with blood. The food you eat is bloody stew. The blood of little children and of strong men is dripping from you very roof-beams. I can close my eyes, now, and hear it drip, drop, drip, drop, all about me.” (London p. 39)
The message of child labor, runs all through the pages of this book and shows the heartless actions of capitalist.
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Child Labor in the 19th and 20th Century
Child labor is one of the most heartless acts that anyone can do. Everyone has a right to an education and proper working conditions. To take innocent children out of school and put them to work in horrible conditions for extreme hours is inhumane. Regardless the situation the parents’ are in and what ever the economy is. To put young innocent kids who were not at fault of anything, other than being born at that time and place to work like that is wrong. The cold-hearted capitalist with only their personal gain at hand, had no problem with doing this.
During the industrial revolution, children worked long hours with little to no pay. They worked in factories for about 19 hours a day, with only a one- hour break. Some children were as young as six years old. They worked in factories and were subject to hazardous conditions, while working 12-14 hours with minimal breaks. Many accidents occurred and many kids were killed. The ones that really got taken advantaged of were orphans. Some were paid no money, because the factory owners justified by saying, they supported them with food, shelter, and clothing. These acts of kindness were very much low. The factory act of 1883 helped improve things a little. Children had to receive a fraction of what an adult would get, although the owners found ways to not pay them at all. (Child labor in Factories, During the industrial Revolution)
Kids were not only exploited in factories, they were used in mills, farms, and mines, as well as the ever present sweat shops. They were proponents and opponents of child labor legislation. They argued over the specifications of an occupation that made a child an exploited
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laborer or what determined legitimate child work. ( Zelizer P.73) The public valued the lives of children, if a child died in an accident from a vehicle or horse carriage. People were enraged and were ready to kill the driver. The conditions the children worked under were also a known issue of the public. “A Pennsylvania law prohibited children under the age of thirteen from working in the mills, but no one had ever tried to enforce it.” (Horton p. 46) The laws were there, and people cared, but people were caught up in their own debacles of life, that not everyone could be concerned as much as they wanted to, and the activists were few.
It wasn’t until the unions started forming that justice would soon be served. A person alone could never fight and win against a big corporation. It took numbers. It took masses of people organizing together to make a stand. The American Federation of Labor and The knights of labor were not perfect unions, but did help a lot, in the cause to end child labor. As well as many unfair conditions the workers faced. (Labor Movement in the United States)
Thanks to the blood, sweat, and tears of the men, women, and children of the past. The 20th century was a lot better for the workforce. The working environment improved a lot and people were treated fairly and respectfully. They also were given a voice and were considered more than ever before. People enjoyed higher wages and more fringe benefits. (American labor in the 20th century) We have improved in America. We live in a time where workers are paid better, conditions are better, and the work day at times is easier due mostly to technological advancements. Thanks to globalization labor has been outsourced and now children around the world are exploited even more than before. Maybe a hundred years from now it may be a thing of the past but as we speak it is very present.
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Works Cited
Child Labor in Factories During the Industrial Revolution.
Horton, Madelyn. The Importance of Mother Jones. California. Lucent books. 1996
Jack (John Griffith) London biography.
U.S. Department of Labor.
Ware, Norman Joseph. The Labor Movement in the United States, 1860-1895. Vintage books, 1929.
Zelizer, A Vivian. Pricing the Priceless Child, Changing the Social Value of Children. New Jersey. Princeton University press. 1994